Thieds to joseph mccaetee and john m



(Nb M odI.)

J. R. DRQDZEWSKI.

STEAM PIPE CONNECTION BETWEEN RAILWAY CARS- No. 377,065. Patented Jan.31', 1888.

N. PEYERS. Filmoiiihographer, wamin mn, n. c.

'NITED STATES JULIUS R. DRODZIHVSKI, OF ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OFT\VO- THIRDS TO JOSEPH MCOARTER AND JOHN H. ORMSBEE, BOTH OF SAME PLACE.

STEAM PIPE CONNECTiON BETWEEN RAlLWAY CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 377,065, dated January31, 1888.

Application filed March 26, 1857.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Beit known that I, J ULIUs R. Dnonznwsnr, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Erie, in the county of Erie and State of Pennsylva-5 nia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Steam-PipeConnections Between Railway-Cars; and I do hereby declare the followingto be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such aswill enable IO others skilled in the art to which it appertains to makeand use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, andto the letters of reference marked thereon,forming part of thisspecification.

My invention consists in the improvements in steam-pipe connectionsbetween railwaycars, hereinafter set forth and explained in thespecification and claim, and is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which- Figure 1 shows a side elevation of sections of tworailway-cars, with portions broken away, showing a side elevation of myimproved steam-pipe connections. Fig. 2 shows a plan view of same asseen from below.

Like letters refer to like parts in all of the figures.

My invention, hereinafter described, is an improvement on Letters PatentNo. 348,661, issued to me and my assignecs September 7, 1886, and isdesigned to somewhat simplify the construction of coils for connectingsteampipes between railway-cars, other objects and advantages thereofbeing hereinafter set forth in the specification'and claim.

In the construction shown, A. A are sections of the ends of tworailway-cars of usual and ordinary construction. In constructing theconnections of the steanrheating pipes between the said cars I constructserpentine 4o coils of pipe, 13 B, the size of the coils diminishingfrom the points 0 and G, where they are secured to the bottoms of thecars, to the point D, where the free ends thereof are coupled togetherbetween the cars.

The serpentine coils or bonds are flat, being all bent in one horizontalplane, and not made helical or coiled about any central axis. The objectof making the coils flat is to allow all f the condensed water to drainout whenever the coupling D is unfastened. \Vith helical 5o coils thiswould be impossible, as some water would remain in the lower parts andwould be apt to burst the coils in frosty weather. The increasing sizeor amplitude of the coils as they recede from the coupling D distributesthe bending strains evenly over all the coils. Each coil or bend willbend a little when the cars are turning a curve, and no undue stresswill be thrown upon any one of them, such as might cause it to crack orbreak off. The ends E and E of the coils O and O, I couple eitherdirectly to the heating-pipes inside of the car, (not shown,) or tosteam-conducting pipes running lengthwise of the car, (not shown,) asdesired, and firmly secure the ends E and E of the coils B and B to thebottoms of the cars A A by means of hooks c e e e, or by otherconvenient means, so that the coils will occupy a horizontal positiongradually sloping downward to the point D, so as to allow for drainage.The outer or free ends of the coils B and B, I preferably secure to thebottoms of the ends of the cars A A by means of short chains F F,though, if desired, any other convenient flexible support may besubstituted therefor. At the point D, I preferably couple the ends ofthe pipes B and B directly together by means of any of the ordinaryforms of couplingjoint, there being sufficient flexibility in the coils13 and B to provide for all of the longitudinal movement of the cars toand from each other on account of slack ness in the car-couplings, aswell as any and all lateral or vertical movement of the ends of the carsin relation to each other. If, however, it is deemed desirable, the endsb bo'f the coils B and B can each be provided with a telescopicjoint, asshown in my Patent No. 348,664, hereinbefore referred to. However, Iprefer the construction I have first above de- 9o scribed. v

In the drawings I show the coils B and B as continuous from the points 0and G, where they are secured to the cars near the ends thereof, Z2 andb, the curves of the coils occupying nearly the whole space. It isobvious,

however, that neither the number of coils used nor their form areessential to the operation of my device, as a less number of coils maybe used provided enough are used to secure the requisite flexibility,and the shape of the coils can be considerably varied within suchhorizontal plane as is necessary to secure their adequate drainage.

Having thus fully described my invention, so as to enable others toconstruct and operate the same, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States, is--- a A flexibleconnection between the steampipes of adjacent railway-cars, consistingof the coupling D, and the two flat inclined coils B and B, secured tothe steam-pipes and to the said coupling, and having their bends maydrain off when the pipes are disconnected,

substantially as and for the purpose set'forth. 25 In testimony whereofI affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JULIUS R. DRODZEWSKI.

Witnesses:

H. J. CURTZE, F. J. BASSETT.

